Is Affiliate Marketing a Legitimate Way to Make Money Online? Uncovering the Truth

With many proven and new options to make money online, one fundamental question remains, are they worth it? And, let’s face it, online money-making is a predatory market. Extra caution will never hurt.

Affiliate marketing has a special place among popular methods to make money online. In fact, due to the success stories, it is one of the most trusted methods to make money online. 

Building a successful affiliate marketing business, contrary to what people think is not a get-rich-quick scheme but a legit strategy to generate passive income online. However, it’s important to take your process seriously so you can become a success story, and to help you we will explore affiliate marketing as a whole to help you make an informed decision before you jump into the digital marketing scene as an affiliate.

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What is Affiliate Marketing? 

Affiliate marketing is an online marketing business that has proven to be a successful method for making money online by promoting third-party products and services in exchange for a commission on the sales generated through your marketing efforts. 

The reasons for its popularity are multiple, but the most remarkable are: 

•  Low starting costs: because, as an affiliate marketer, you don’t sell your services and products, there is no need to invest in inventory and production. It’s possible to start with little to no money. 
• It is an on-the-go business: You can run your affiliate marketing from anywhere, and your working hours are up to you too. 
• Affiliate marketers don’t need an inventory: or shipping budget. With affiliate marketing, you are promoting products to generate your affiliate income. Since you are not selling your goods, there are no production and inventory management costs. 
• Access to multiple product options: the alternatives are vast. You can choose an affiliate program that resonates with your interests and passions.  

How Does It Work?

When you become an affiliate marketer, you promote products or services and earn a commission for the sales you drive using your unique affiliate link.  

Once your business and strategies are set and running, it’s the time to consider your affiliate a revenue a passive or semi-passive income, but as a beginner, there is work involved because you need to research and build your plan so you can have a map and compass and direct your efforts accordingly. Take a moment to learn more about the structure behind affiliate marketing and the different actors involved in the marketing chain.  

The Product Owner

It is the person (or company) behind your product or service. In the affiliate marketing industry, you can find individuals, small businesses, and established companies because affiliate marketing is a cost-effective marketing strategy to generate sales and increase brand visibility.  

The Affiliate Marketer

The affiliate marketer is the one driving sales through an exclusive affiliate link. Beyond sales, affiliate marketers are avid content creators and social media marketers. 

The Consumer  

The consumer can is the final link of the affiliate marketing network. He is living proof of the actual value of your affiliate marketing strategy.   

The Affiliate Network

The affiliate network is the platform or service that serves as the middleman between the affiliate marketers and the merchants.

Joining an affiliate network has added benefits. When you become an affiliate marketer for a network, you can access a standardized commission structure, technical support, tracking, and technical support for problems related to an affiliate program.  

How Do You Become an Affiliate Marketer?

Before you start an affiliate marketing business, notice that apart from your passion and commitment, you’ll need a marketing platform to promote your products or services, a platform to share high-quality content, and a niche or affiliate network to direct your efforts. 

Select Your Marketing Platforms

Affiliate marketers need a place to showcase their affiliate products or services. Think about a platform you can drive traffic to and where you can regularly create content to engage internet users and drive sales through content marketing. YouTube, Instagram, and blogging are excellent options.  

Research

If you are still here, you already know that affiliate marketing works. 

You have probably heard a lot about the industry and feel you are ready to jump in, but like in any other entrepreneurship, you need to educate yourself before deciding to engage in affiliate marketing. 

Many affiliate marketers skip this crucial part of the process and fail because they didn’t take the time and resources to understand how the affiliate business behaves. 

Find a Profitable Niche 

The end goal of affiliate marketing is to make money, and you must drive sales. 

For that reason, you must target and attract a specific audience to convert leads into sales. These niches tend to have a steady following and provide a massive audience to direct your affiliate marketing efforts, increasing the chances of affiliate revenue.       

Select Products and Services 

To become a successful affiliate marketer, you must promote the right products and services. 

Affiliate sales are tricky at times, consider your passions and life experiences to choose the products to promote.

Ask yourself what you would like to promote and target only products within your niche to keep your audience hooked and coming back for more.

Affiliate marketing involves planning and strategy. Decide if you want to associate with a seller or join an affiliate network. If you decide that affiliate networks work best for your particular niche, we suggest you explore the following first. 

Amazon (Amazon Affiliates Program) 

The commission for this affiliate program range between 1-10% of the sale price. Like many affiliate programs, you can promote your affiliate link using social media marketing, blogging, and advertisements. 

ShareASale

This affiliate marketing program helps content creators and influencers to start affiliate marketing to further monetize their content by partnering with popular brands.   

ClickBank

It is a leader in the market and has successful affiliates to back its reputation. For new affiliates has an added benefit, as it offers training and resources to help you become the most successful affiliate marketer you can be.

Omnisend

Omnisend’s affiliate program offers a 20% monthly recurring commission for each new referral that joins the platform on a paid plan, with a 30-day payout time and a dedicated account manager. The program also provides ready-made packs of banners, ads, and other content, as well as above-average ratings from users on popular review sites. Omnisend also has a partner program with revenue share opportunities, bonuses, and access to value-add services

Build Your Operations Center 

You have your game ready, but there is one fundamental thing you need to get started, you need to buy domain name and start your affiliate website. Affiliate marketers need a go-to place to conduct their business, and having your website is the most efficient way. 

There are multiple approaches, some affiliates prefer having only an affiliate marketing website, while others prefer to strategically divide their efforts across multiple websites to boost their resources. 

Consider your objectives, budget, and projections to decide if you want (or can) run multiple websites at once. 

FAQs

What to Consider When Choosing Your Niche? 

Finding the niche for your affiliate marketing business is a complex task. However, you can consider some key factors to make affiliate marketing work for you.

• Compepetitivity and opportunity 
• Profitability  
• Audience size
• Your background and general experience 
• The resources you are willing to invest (money and time) 
• Your interests and Passions
• Evergreen Vs trending marketing niches

What Is the Real Secret to Affiliate Marketing?

It is a tricky question, and the answer relates to who you ask and their personal experience with this business model. 

Thinking about adding value to your affiliate marketing is not just about selling a product, is about selling a solution. 

Connecting, nurturing, and growing an audience drives more sales and helps you build a steady source of affiliate marketing revenue.

Neal Taparia, the founder of Solitaire, recommends focusing on becoming an authority. “If you can show that you’re a trustworthy source where you can provide unbiased recommendations, you can succeed well. We’re able to affiliate market card decks because our users see us as the leader in card games.”

Another secret, or not so secret, is to diversify. A blog can become an excellent strategy for generating affiliate income, but if you are committed to developing your online business, you need to move further than search engine optimization. 

As an affiliate marketer, you are trying to build a steady and trustable source of income, and you can not risk losing everything due to an unexpected penalty from Google.

Always use a multi-channel strategy including social media, forum marketing, and email marketing to spread your unique affiliate link to the world. 

What Should You Avoid in Affiliate Marketing?

Affiliate marketing requires a good strategy and part of it is avoiding the common mistakes that often lead affiliate marketers to failure. We gathered a few examples of the common flaws in affiliate marketing. 

Promoting Too Many Products

The best practice to maintain audience engagement and use your resources efficiently is to concentrate your efforts on a limited list of products. 

Promoting the Wrong Product 

Choose your niche and product carefully. If your product doesn’t align with your audience and niche, you may fail in affiliate marketing. 

Ignoring Search Engine Optimization

SEO is the best way to increase and sustain organic traffic and generate revenue. Never underestimate the power of SEO. 

Final Considerations

We explored all the aspects of the affiliate marketing business to provide insight for digital marketers considering stepping into the affiliate industry. 

Affiliate marketing is a legit business model with the potential to create a steady and sustainable revenue if you are willing to invest the resources into this digital marketing venture. 

Many affiliate marketers see the process as an instant solution, but becoming a successful affiliate marketer takes time and commitment. That is the unfolded truth.